Day 2 of the convention kind of reminded me of a roller coaster ride. It started off slow, lulling you into a false sense of security, and then ended with a bang. By the end of the night, we’d gotten to hear the best speech of the convention and – if the liberal media’s responses are any indication – a rousing, effective acceptance speech from Paul Ryan.
The mood in the arena was largely one of lethargy for most of Wednesday night. I joined Norm Leahy on Radio Row in the media center around 6:30 where we taped last night’s podcast, watched as a handful of Democrats made the rounds and then ran into McClatchey’s newest White House correspondent Anita Kumar, who many of us know from her five years as the Virginia Politics blogger for WaPo on the shuttle back to the convention hall. Up until that point, the biggest news from the convention floor was Rand Paul’s speech and the resulting walk out of many Ron Paul delegates and guests in protest of the kerfuffle over the seating of the Maine delegation. Ron Paul’s folks were scattered on the ground outside the convention, holding signs and frequently being challenged by attendees who kept reminding them Mitt Romney was the nominee. Their response? “We’re getting ready for 2016.” Not exactly a vote of confidence for Mitt Romney.
It looked, for a while, like that was going to be about the only news generated from the convention that night. John McCain gave what must have been a difficult speech for him, having had the spotlight four years ago. Pam Bondi, Florida’s Attorney General was joined by Georgia’s AG Sam Olin – who bore a striking resemblance to Jon Lovitz – for one of the most excruciating speeches of the night, which had the same pacing and bad jokes of a presentation speech at the Oscars. Tim Pawlenty, Mike Huckabee, and Rob Portman’s speeches were lackluster and between them were heavily scripted vignettes with folks in the crowd that were simply cringeworthy. The crowd perked up slightly during Puerto Rico Governor Luis Fortuno’s speech, but by then the feeling that the night was almost a loss had settled heavily on the crowd.
And then Condi Rice walked in.
I was immediately struck by the fact that she wasn’t using the teleprompter. From my seats I had been able to see the backup video monitor the speakers had been using all night, and for the first time it had gone dark. Condi was well received by the crowd, and proceeded to give one of the best – if not the best – speeches of the convention. As our readers note, I had poo-pooed the idea that Condi could be a credible Vice Presidential candidate. I was wrong. Her speech was forceful, heartfelt and included some lines that we will see and hear over and over again. The reminder that in the Democratic controlled Deep South of her youth she couldn’t order a hamburger at the Woolworth’s lunch counter but her parents always told her she could be President if she wanted to be – and she grew up to be Secretary of State – was powerful and brought the room to its feet in a way that no other speech had, even eclipsing Ann Romney and Chris Christie from the night before.
After hearing Condi’s speech, I have to agree with her parents – if the mood from the arena last night was any indication, she actually could be President if she wanted to be. I almost expected to see “Condi!” signs sprout organically from the audience.
This was followed up by one of the few effective speeches from a VP-short lister, Susan Martinez from New Mexico. She had an impossible job, following Condi Rice, but she held her own.
As I told Norm last night, I expected Paul Ryan’s speech to be a strong one, showcasing why he was chosen for the ticket, and previewing his role as attack-dog for the Romney campaign. I had expected his speech to be wonky, and hit the president hard. I was half right. His speech was hard hitting, layered heavily with GenX style sarcasm that played well with the crowd, and the “AC/DC to Zepplin” line was great. Ryan did his job superbly and left the convention on its feet – which was a stark contrast to how we began the night. Those who had been claiming that Ryan’s choice was a bad one have a large plate of crow to eat after last night’s speech. Ryan’s speech was great.
And the talking heads, especially on MSNBC, confirmed it: Ryan did his job amazingly well. I could almost see the froth coming from their mouths over Twitter, where MSNBC Contributor Krystal Ball used the word “lie” so repeatedly I remarked we should make a drinking game out of it. Ryan’s mention of a GM plant in Wisconsin that closed after then Senator Obama gave a speech in front of it promising it would remain open sent Chris Mathews and Ed Schultz into orbit in spluttering rage, noting the plant closed in December 2008 before Obama was sworn in. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker responded well to them, effectively saying it was a fair dig – Obama shouldn’t have promised if he couldn’t deliver.
From my perspective, that was a great little piece of speechwriting trolling – the exact kind of thing that would spin the press into a tizzy, but in the overall scheme of things matters little. Ryan is embracing his role as chief attacker for the campaign and has already been effective at it.
Tonight’s end of the convention will see Mitt Romney formally accept the nomination and give what is clearly the most important speech of his life. I’m looking forward to being there to watch.
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